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Desist from
martial law, ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: Pakistani President Rafiq Tarar has said that immediate efforts should be made to restore democracy in the country by installing a new civilian Government even as members of the Pakistani Muslim League have hinted at the ...more
Sharif conspired against ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: Ousted Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was ..more US Senate rejects nuke WASHINGTON, Oct 14: The US Senate has soundly rejected a global....more India, S Africa to finalise
NEW DELHI, Oct 14: India and South Africa are likely to soon finalise an .....more |
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Dalai Lama paints grim PADADENA, Oct 14: Living conditions for....more Ex-Pak President ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: Pakistan’s former President....more South African President congrats Vajpayee NEW DELHI, Oct 14: South African President Thabo Mbeki .....more
Clinton steps up WASHINGTON, Oct 14: US President Bill Clinton has stepped up pressure .....more |
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Desist
from martial law, instal civil rule, ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: Pakistani President Rafiq Tarar has said that immediate efforts should be made to restore democracy in the country by installing a new civilian Government even as members of the Pakistani Muslim League have hinted at the replacement of Mr Sharif as leader of the party in case the Muslim League Government is restored. Gen Pervaiz Musharaf, who met Mr Tarar yesterday, apprised him of the circumstances which prompted him to dismiss Mr Sharif and assume control of the country. The President, while endorsing Gen Musharraff move, was of the view that the country should not be dragged towards martial law and a civilian Government should be installed for the interim period till a solution was found to the present crisis. Meanwhile, several Muslim League legislators have openly demanded that Mr Sharif resign as leader of the house and instead a new leader be appointed from within the ruling party so that the democratic process could continue. In this connection Mr Ejazul Haq, MNA and elder son of late Gen Ziaul Haq, has said he was trying to convene a meeting of the parliamentary party to discuss the situation and avoid a stalemate. In an interview to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) last night, Mr Haq, who is also the senior vice president of the leaque, expressed the view that if a new leader of house is elected, the party would still be allowed to rule the country as the Army does not want to impose martial law. Mr Ejazul Haq, currently in Dubai, is expected to return to Pakistan shortly to convene the meeting of the MNAs. Similar views have also been expressed by Mian Azhar, a former close associate of Mr Sharif, who was debarred from the basic membership of the party by Mr Sharif. Mian Azhar, who is also related to Mr Sharif, has been openly criticising the deposed Prime Minister and his policies. According to sources, Mian Azhar enjoyed support of nearly 20 MNAs opposed to Mr Sharif. Howver, he refused to disclose their names. Meanwhile the Army authorities are continuing their consultations with legal experts, including the former Law Minister and legal wizard Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada. The Army Generals are already in touch with the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Sajjad Ali Shah. The dismissed Prime Minister, who is under arrest and lodged in a rest house near Islamabad, has refused to oblige the Army Generals to tender his resignation as leader of the house. In the meantime the military Government has decided to initiate an inquiry against Mr Sharif on charges of massive corruption and misuse of his authority during his tenure. "We have got certain evidence which prove that Mr Sharif was busy in conspiracies against the Army, according to an official spokesman." He said three were major players in this insidious conspiracy in the absence of the Army Chief. All of them have been arrested. He, however, declined to name them. According to the spokesman, the Nawaz Sharif Government wanted to arrest Gen Musharraf after diverting his plane from Colombo to Nawabshah in Sindh, where, he said, arrangements for the arrest of the Army Chief had been made for which the IG Police, Sindh was issued directives. The Sindh IG had since been removed and arrested by the Army. The military authorities have also decided to hold military trials of pro-Sharif officers, among whom were Lt Gen Ziauddin Butt, Lt Gen Tariq Pervez, former Quetta Corps Commander, and Brig Javed Malik, former Military Secretary to Mr Sharif. According to the spokesman, these officers made clear cut attempts to implement Mr Sharif’s orders of dismissal of Gen Musharraf. It was also disclosed last night that the notification for the much-controversial retirement orders of Gen Musharraf by Mr Sharif were never issued nor were they available on record. It was a drama and was publicised only on TV and radio, the spokesman said. Brig Javed Malik has also been been arrested for threatening to shoot a military major at the PTV station where the major was on the operation duty of the Army. The Army authorities have alleged that Mr Sharif had leaked defence secrets of Pakistan and the Army had obtained proof of this. According to another charge, Mr Sharif was trying to malign the Army. According to another report the former Prime Minister had also planned to retire 13 senior military officials. The Chief of the Airforce was also to be arrested, it is alleged. The military Government have put as many as two hundred persons including ministers, Assembly members, senior civil and military officers and journalists, on the exit control list. A large number of supporters of Mr Sharif, who were given high posts on contract basis, are being removed. Many have already been removed. Defence Secretary Lt Gen Iftekhar Ali Choudhry, who was appointed on contract, was removed Gen Iftekhar is the elder brother of former federal minister and a close associate of Mr Nisar Ali Choudhry. The Defence Secretary did not attend the office yesterday. Meanwhile, the removal of Mr Sharif is now being welcomed by people from various walks of life. In many places the people came on roads to distribute sweets. The opposition leaders have also welcomed Mr Sharif’s removal and the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), an alliance of 15 political parties, has decided to withdraw its proposed call of rallies and demonstrations against the former Government. The chief of Jamaat Islami Qazi Husain, who was the only leader predicting division and differences in the armed forces, is now demanding fresh elections in the country. Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, now in London, is also making a similar demand. However her return to Pakistan will depend on the future plans of the Army, she added. (UNI) |
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Sharif conspired against Pakistan military: Army ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: Ousted Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was hatching a "conspiracy" against the Army, an Army spokesman was quoted as saying today. "We have got certain evidences which prove that Nawaz Sharif was busy in conspiracies against the Army," the spokesman was quoted by the domestic NNI news agency as saying. There was no official word yet on what policies Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf would announce for a new Government or what form it would take. Gen Musharraf was behind the coup on Tuesday which overthrew Mr Sharif’s 31-month-old Government. The general held his first meeting since the takeover with figurehead President Mohammad Rafiq Tarar late yesterday and discussed "matters of national importance", state media said without giving details. NNI also reported that Sharif had been "shifted to an unknown destination" after he was placed under house arrest on Tuesday. (REUTERS) |
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US Senate rejects nuke ban treaty defeat for Clinton WASHINGTON, Oct 14: The US Senate has soundly rejected a global treaty that would ban all nuclear testing, delivering President Bill Clinton a stinging defeat on a pact he had made a centerpiece of his second-term foreign policy. The 48-51 vote, with one lawmaker voting "present", went primarily along party lines, with all but four of Senate’s 55 Republicans voting against the pact and Clinton’s democrats supporting it. Ratification would have required a two-thirds majority, or 67 votes, in favour. The political spectacle of the past two weeks is a major embarrassment for Mr Clinton, who was forced to request a delay in the vote on a treaty he favoured after Republicans surprised the White House by moving quickly for a vote, knowing the pact would be defeated. Rejection came hours after democrats failed in a test vote that would have postponed formal action, and after intensive negotiations among leaders of both parties that failed to broker a deal to postpone the final vote. "My feeling now is the right thing to do is defeat this treaty," majority leader Trent Lott told reporters after his talks with democrat leader Tom Daschle broke off. Mr Daschle blamed the failure on a small group of conservative Republicans who opposed the treaty and were determined to deliver Clinton a political defeat. Following the vote, Mr Lott said the Senate had performed its "important quality-control function" in rejecting a "flawed" treaty. "The founding fathers never conceived that the senate would become a rubber stamp for a flawed treaty," Mr Lott said. "We will reject bad treaties when it’s in the national interest of our country and our allies." Mr Lott said he had written to Defence Secretary William Cohen requesting a comprehensive review of the state of the US nuclear arsenal. Mr Clinton was the first world leader to sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in 1996. He was followed by 154 countries, although only 25 of 44 countries considered capable of producing nuclear weapons have ratified the pact. The treaty would ban nuclear testing and provide for international on-site inspections to verify compliance. Mr Clinton had made it a cornerstone of his efforts to stem the proliferation of nuclear weapons. The United States implemented a unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing in 1992, and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said the Clinton administration would honour that policy even if the treaty is rejected. (AGENCIES) |
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India, S Africa to finalise pact on defence cooperation NEW DELHI, Oct 14: India and South Africa are likely to soon finalise an agreement on defence cooperation which is expected to extend to research and development, visiting South African Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said here today. South Africa was keen to advance cooperation with India in sharing of core competencies, technology transfer, joint ventures, co-development, co-production and joint business and marketing, lekota, here in connection with the international defence exhibition ‘Defexpo-99’, told reporters. We look to your country and... Hope to enhance and expand our strategic partnership, the minister said. Stating that defence cooperation constituted an essential element of the Indo-South African strategic partnership, Lekota said the two countries were In the process of concluding an agreement on defence cooperation which is expected to be finalised shortly. On the issue of technology transfer, he said there were No limits and that it would be negotiated from time to time. We are open on this, he added. It is anticipated that cooperation (in defence) will extend even further in the areas of research and development and in co-development and production projects, he said. The minister said South Africa had world class equipment and technology for mine detection and mine clearing and the best 155/52 calibre towed howitzer guns. India has already procured 90 casspir mine-protected armoured personnel carriers from South Africa and is said to have placed orders for more of these. (PTI) |
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Dalai Lama paints grim picture of situation in Tibet PADADENA, Oct 14: Living conditions for Tibetans have deteriorated considerably since communication between Tibetan Exiles and the Chinese Government ceased last year, the Dalai Lama said during a visit to Southern California. There is not even informal contact, he told reporters here in California yesterday. In the meantime, the situation inside Tibet is worsening and policies are hardening. China broke off official talks in 1993 to resolve the status of the troubled province. But informal communication continued until last fall, when China ceased all contact. The 14th Dalai Lama, whose name is Tenzin Gyatso, offered no specific examples of worsening conditions, but there have been reports of Chinese police jailing, torturing and harassing Tibetans. Chinese officials also have denied a US report that Buddhist monks and nuns, including those in Tibet, have been arrested for their religious beliefs. The exiled leader of the Tibetan people repeated a call for the region’s autonomy. The province has been under Chinese control since China’s invasion in 1950. China contends Tibet has always been part of its territory, while Tibetans say they were independent before 1950. The Buddhist leader fled Tibet in 1959. My own stand is not to seek separation or independence, He said. No single tibetan dreams of a restoration of the old lifestyle. Every tibetan wants to build a new, modern country. The Dalai Lama recognized that Tibet cannot do so on its own, but said he will insist that China, or whichever country the province joins, guarantees Tibetans the rights of self-Government. (AP) |
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Ex-Pak President wants interim Govt ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: Pakistan’s former President Farooq Leghari today called for a caretaker Government that should "cleanse" the country of corruption and hold elections. "That (caretaker) may have, as its priority agenda, accountability, and the return of the plundered wealth from Pakistan. That may have on its agenda moves towards restoration of democracy in the real sense," Mr Leghari said from Lahore, provincial capital of Punjab. Mr Leghari, who now leads his own political party, resigned in 1997 after months of power struggle with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted in a military coup on Tuesday. Mr Leghari said Mr Sharif’s administration had destroyed all national institutions in his two-years in power and had lastly tried to create "dissention and subversion" in the armed forces which prompted the Army Chief Pervez Musharraf to take over. "It had subjugated the judiciary, it had trampled upon the supremacy of the rule of law, it had violated the constitution in letter and in spirit in dealing with the provinces and it was weakening every institution of the state." "Lastly, it had started creating subversion and dissension within the armed forces of the country," Leghari said. (REUTERS) |
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South African President congrats Vajpayee NEW DELHI, Oct 14: South African President Thabo Mbeki today complimented Atal Behari Vajpayee on his assumption of office as Prime Minister of India and expressed the hope that the friendship and cooperation between the two countries would be further cemented in the days to come. Conveying the message, South African Defence Minister M Lekota said the two countries shared a unique bond as several nationals in our country were of Indian ancestry. Since the democratisation of our country, South Africa and India have worked to build upon the foundations already laid, consolidating and strengthening political, economic and cultural links, Lekota told reporters at Defexpo-99 here. He said the centrepiece of the relationship between the two countries was the concept of strategic partnership, expressed and formalised in the Red Fort declaration, which was signed in 1997 by former South African President Nelson Mandela and then Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda. He also complimented the people of India on behalf of South African people for successful conclusion of the general elections. (PTI) |
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Clinton steps up pressure on Pak to restore democracy WASHINGTON, Oct 14: US President Bill Clinton has stepped up pressure on Pakistan’s new military rulers to restore democracy saying he would be consulting all concerned nations about maintaining peace and stability in South Asia. Describing Tuesday’s bloodless coup as another setback to Pakistani democracy, Clinton said he was sending US Ambassador William Milam, who was in the US at the time of the coup, back to Islamabad to underscore my view directly to the military authorities and to hear their intentions. Clinton said in a prepared statement Pakistan’s interests would be served by a prompt return to civilian rule and restoration of the democratic process. I urge Pakistan to move quickly in that direction. US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, speaking hours before the US Senate refused to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), said we expect them (the Pakistani authorities) to return to democratic rule and want to hear what their plans are. I want to make it absolutely clear that military takeovers of this kind make it difficult to carry on business as usual. US Defence Secretary William Cohen, who accompanied her on a visit to the University of Maine, reacted cautiously saying I think it is a very tense situation over there. We have to exercise some caution on how we respond to it on a day-to-day basis. Cohen, who refrained from outright condemnation of the ouster of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, said the US had little leverage over the country because of a decline in trade ties and also due to military sanctions against it since 1990 over its nuclear programme which were intensified after its nuclear tests in May last year. We have to bring by talking with our allies some kind of a concerted statement of concern so that they get a restoration of constitutional Government, the US Defence Secretary added. The House of Representatives today passed the conference report on defence that gives President Clinton the authority not only to relax economic and technological sanctions but also to open the arms pipeline to Pakistan. White House spokesman Joe Lockhart, however, declined to say whether the US would oppose the next instalment of an IMF loan to Pakistan. (PTI) |
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